'ArtBy' Valerio & The Arts Hole - Outside' the Box '

you know its beyond ironic to me that the city of Plymouth is investing in its museum and art gallery at the moment ( you know how many people there are in this city that are living in actual poverty )

not only in this disgraceful age of austerity is Derriford hospital falling to pieces and filling what could otherwise be bed/ward space with fucking sainsbury's and domino's pizza ?? but the city is building a very expensive Box to cram all of the imperialistic ideals into as grand a façade as possible as quickly and cheaply as possible ( again no hint of intended irony there )

and once again I site myself in a position of prominence to tackle some of that style of pompous arseholery  ... taking on a small home studio for 5 months in this city that keeps trying to kill me !

Art By Valerio - absolutely outside the box !!!  0% Government 0%Corporate completely independent and uncensored 100% ABV  x x x


Art By Valerio & The Arts Hole Pop up Initiative

The Arts Hole POP UP Exhibition option sprang up in an otherwise disused space around the summer of 2006 at the height of the credit crunch in a sleepy coastal backwater in south East Cornwall , some have even accredited this resourceful act as one of the clear pioneering acts f the now internationally embraced and ever popular pop up initiatives that can be found city to city the world over !

originally designed as an act of protest against soaring property prices / stagnant wages and the Iraq invasion during a so called labour government at the time …

the Arts Hole went into Collaboration with the Tiffany Gallery East Looe Cornwall in the winter of 2008 which coined a friendship that lasts to this day

2011 the arts hole urban expansion was initiated, eventually coining the name ' The Valerio Institute of Alternative Learning '

2015 the arts hole franchise expansion to the Netherlands incorporating many student protest elements

2017 the arts hole on tour - sailing exhibition of arts and design principles

2018 the arts hole upstiairs - home spun charm while I have charmingly spun home x

''siting the ever popular ' Signature Style ' that is the artists own progressively developing style, within the Cornish ' Art Scene ' at the time, this artists prominence and notoriety has only broadened during his extensive career to encapsulate a portfolio of such diversity as to truly set him apart from his contemporaries - an internationally well respected and established, broadly underground creative ''

Arts Hole pop up galleries and studios (2006) are a community orientated creative industries company - an exhibition description for the trading entity known as ' Artby Valerio ' (1998) and can always be found via the traditional online means just google ' Artby Valerio and get in touch or keep up to date with the latest pop up schedules and exhibition dates

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The Cornish ' Art Scene '

the Cornish art scene is by and large reflective of so many elements of our current state of disarray  that it is amazing to me that is it is not more openly discussed !

Once upon a time - when most people still actually worked for a living, a bunch of faces deep etched by the daily Elememts they toiled in , on a rugged and windswept yet beautiful , far lung fringe of this land, opted to wile away times not spent toiling or drinking ….. on a few renderings ! Quite often composed out of left over tins of antifoul or homemade watercolours - this for me . is where the real guts of the ' Cornish Art Scene ' began !

and Cornwall remained for many years - a bit of a nostalgic throwback for decades after this actually - Humble / Rugged / Quant / Raw and Real x

That is of course until around the late 1960's and through the seventies , at this point legislation overtook production in this country full stop !

The ' Tourist Boom ' really began to take hold as the notion of recreationalism and ' obsessive compulsive acquisition ' really became a corner stone of a once proud ' ish ' economy .  ! but the little seaside getaways were now beginning to be replaced by cheap foreign holidays instead  !

but even so rents were reasonable and a sleepy yet ratifying existence could still be eeked out here, that is of course until the artificial inflation of the property market in the greater London area began to spill its poison out into the surrounding counties and like some untended infection ran rampant!

Fringe communities stared to spring up in greater and greater numbers ! Beatniks , Poets , Artsists and Hippies of all kinds would live in and travel around this last little avenue of freedom in these far flung places of cornwall, wales and scotland… away from the ministrations of our ever expanding yet increasingly inept administrations - looking for a more low cost / creative orientated way to live …. connected to the land and environment ! and in doing so really reinvigorated the Cornish art scene with a little innovation and recourceful ness...I recall moving to the area in the early 1980's and there really was still a rebellious / salty / piractical / farmer character to the place ...

this in turn encouraged the new waves of burgeoning Bourgeoise classes from Reagan and Thatchers delapidated and economically depleted  urban areas  ….. to come and ' Find out ' what was going on in Cornwall ( after all Bo Ho communities have always been where te party is … I know these days its all been rebranded into some weird amalgamative cross over between ' High Tea ' and ' Mad max but I do still think that between the bare lightbulbs - and upcycled palette bar installation - its still easy to see the genuine article over the bank balance orientated bullshit )

so these Hipsters ( Yuppies at the time ) unable to slow the degeneration of the boroughs they invested in - began to ' invest ' in the holiday home fairytale from Margaret thatchers nonsensical ' property ladder ' voodoo … which in turn of course , drove up prices and reduced the scale of attraction, and by default the flow of paradigm contesting art and artists that had been swarming to the region

Towards the end of the 1980's the ' Art Scene ' indeed much , was in Dire straits - most of the small independent Artists Studios had closed or relocated to the far more embracing and liberally minded Artists Communities in Europe and Further afield

Compounded by this was the infiltration of the Yuppy ilk from the London Class of Economics! came up with a con !

for about a decade you could find where once there was an actual working studio - a retailer of cheap Chinese and Taiwanese ' art ' ( mass produced in factories by unnamed unknown factory workers ...en mass ! ) in every Cornish town were these cheaper distributors of even cheaper wares posing as ' Cornish art ' by ' Cornish artists '

but it was a total scam and a lot of tourists got burned with this !

Fortunately this practice became so rife as to become blatant and people actually started noticing that instead of a Cornish fishing trawler in the painting … that if you looked closely it was actually a Chinese junk … in more ways than one !

so for a short while people did actually start questioning what they wee buying !

What was left of the original lobster pot hut , independent artists studios that had managed to survive the previous decades were constantly having to fight with their audiences - offering assurances of originality ( but like buying glass in venice … it can be pretty hard to be sure )

So Larger and Larger ' Collectives ' started to form …. these days try walking from one end of cornwall to the other and you cant travel five miles without tripping over some half baked collective or other ( we actually seem to be doing exactly the same with festivals at the moment too )

Roll on to Present Day

and all of these collectives are filled with ( at least it seems to me anyway ) a load of inept early retiring civil servamts and failed hairdressers from the home counties, that like nothing more than to sit around in edinburugh woollen mill garments that are at least two sizes too big for them …. and according to their ' artists statement ' they occaisionally take fido out for a couple of hours in some light drizzle so that they can chanel all of that ' raw energy ' and inspiration through some shitty ceramics process … or the smearing of a lot of tones of beige about !

if I could get it to convey appropriately …. I would fart loudly here ! but the point is lost a little in this written medium of choice

Of Course amongst all of these menopausal women posing as actual artisans simply because they had revenue to buy a house here ( all terribly dubious you understand ) you will find the now well established and royaly endorsed whistlefish - that for legal reasons cant call themselves an actal gallery anymore x and like jimmy Saville … the less said about that the better x ( a bit like a budget Tate - a load of corporate and government assholes that don't really know much about anything but how to manipulate fools … and in turn markets )
so now instead of Taiwanese paintings filling vacant overpriced premises , you will find on every Cornish highstreet one of these mcdonalds art distributors ….

and that's the situation as she stands !!its gone from bad to worse to dire … and I don't see any sign of improvement at all …. anywhere !!

Monday Fucking Morning !!! the natural habitat for bankers , politicians, estate agents , percentage people and busy bodies of all kinds !

Fuck These People !! all day long with the open end of a rusty rake !!!

so I rented a piece of shit property from some delusional imperialist weirdos , and as always I open my home and humble studio to the public , this serves several age old purposes

1. I GET TO LIVE AND WORK PEACABLY IN AN ENVIRONMENT I HAVE TAILORED TO SUIT ME ! in doing so , I am off the streets and not rousing rebellion in any obvious or dangerous sense ! it also renders product from time … this in case the Margaret thatcher degree in commerce through agency has brainwashed you completely is the origin of all economies , a producer or practitioner takes a raw material and renders from it a product or service !! this then has commercial viability from which all other markets spring !! its the original human endeavour !!

2. through the public presentation and engagement of said product or service , audiences can be met and engaged with , topical issues brought to discussion , and resolves manifested !!

and yet in just doing what I humbly choose to do in this maddening age of the charlatan , I am often indisposed by the most rudimentary arrogances and suppositions of self importance ! indeed the organizations institutions  and individuals that are supposed to encourage and incentivise enterprise and innovation , have simply become some grotesque parasitic tick ! draining the very life blood out of the things they were set up to protect !

so I rented this thing , so I could live and work in a place ( reluctantly I might add ) where previous experiences of admin ineptitude have left a great deal to be desired ! from a collective of peculiarities and women institute type importance ! I fix up the building ( doomed anyway to some half baked planning application for yet more student accommodation that will be surplus to requirement ) fill it with art … put out a little cardboard signage for the sake of the city wide open studio events !

and lo and behold !! you cant put that there , … you cant do that , … that's not allowed …. its against the rules !!

trust me , my experiments over the past 15 years with the applicable value of the rules … and the dubious character of the individuals that would nepatistically uphold them ! has left me more than proficiently versed in the terms of conduct for my particular trade … even in administrations as obviously retarded as the ones we tend to tolerate here in this country at the moment !

so they stole my signs !! the RAOB actually went to the trouble to try to insist upon me of all people !! what the formal procedure should be!

this as anyone familiar with my particular code of conduct can imagine ….did not go so well …


and after an exaggerated tirade there and then denouncing the validity of such petty quasi little organizations I conceded to consider the formal procedure !

and this here would be the written response to the ' committee ' for appraisal …. they wanted a proposal in writing for consideration , but I figure putting this here as a matter of public record is good enough !



FAO committee memebers of the RAOB North Hill Plymouth September 10th 2018

Firstly in the interest of decorum I would offer apology for being so abrupt yesterday in dealing with your chairman and associate on the premises in the evening of Sunday 11th September 2018 , however there is some inevitability in reaction when the individual is drawn unessicarily into confrontation versus a collective during what should otherwise be a more gainful pursuit even on a sunday evening  !

once again its first thing on a Monday morning and I , instead of engaging in bespoke productions , completing elements of commissioned trade to be conducted in whats left of this sterile economy ! I am having to allocate my valuable time ( billable at about £ 2500 per week ) conceding to write my completely defensible position out for yet another ethereal council !!

over the past 15 years I seem to have managed to turn a valid political protest into a commercially viable vocation , despite recessions / elections / credit crunches / austerity and even Brexit !!

and this is in part why I cannot simply comply and adhere to imposed strictures or ' standard procedure '. As all ' standard procedure ' have seemingly become so mired in bureaucratic procedure to have rendered functionality questionable at best ! and I would just like to highlight this incident as a fine example of just that !

It is hard enough to drum up any semblance of sensible and consistent trade in this economically emaciated corner of Brexit Britain !, and yet despite many appealing offers for alternative opportunities this is where, for myriad reasons I have chosen to site myself for the temporary time being ! and it would be all the more tolerable given the opportunity to simply live and work away in peace ! …. but this is Plymouth After all !!

I will openly state that it is always my preference , when and where possible, to maintain as amiable a disposition as circumstance will allow !

so in the interest of good diplomacy , and utter transparency I will offer these points for your consideration in lieu of your ' insistence for proposal ' ( both of which demand the same level of concentration and application …. however you just managed to get my back up here about this )

POINT 1

Introductions :

the names stated on the tenancy agreement - ie the individuals co habiting the uppermost floor of the premises in question:  41 north hill Plymouth

a standard tenants agreement has been formulated agreed to and signed through appointed representative ( nova homes )

tenant 1 of European origin but legal resident and full time employee for over ten years !

tenant 2 ( me ) international artist and designer of considerable repute concerning subjects beyond the areas of assumed expertise !

POINT 2

Agency :

I personally detest this countries reliance on outsourced agency and the inherent cowardice that can be found through such squirrely mediations !!

WE LIVE UPSTAIRS FOR GOODNESS SAKE !

should you take exception or offense to an issue or have a point to be raised ! come and talk to us about it ! and we can rely on agency mediation in the event that interparty negotiation should break down or fail !

it is a sad shame that dealing with people face to face has become such an unusual practice in tis day and age !! the age of the charlatan !!

POINT 3

Atelier :

an artists Residence can by default be a legally utilisable studio space ! ……

and again by default ! can be legally used to garner custom / receive the public / promote productions and exhibit works completed and or in progress !

for which ' nominal ' and ' temporary ' ( non fixed / non permanent ) signages can be ' reasonably' employed !! ( in accordance with dimension limitations / illuminated or otherwise  specifications / siting specifications R.E emergency access and egress and the implications for health and safety practice requirements !

for the DURATION or a predetermined , temporary exhibition or open studio

POINT 4

Signages Specific :

please feel free to peruse the available legislation guidelines for

- A boards / Standees / Flags and Flyers

- public exhibitions

- public exhibitions/ events  on private land

-Temporary public notices

- Art installations in public and private spaces

I think that you will find that city wide cultural promotions will also correspond to specific exemptions and exception clauses within this area of by -law

Note 1

should the incompetent council that is supposed to be acting as commissioned custodian to this city ( who I have had the misfortune of having to deal with in court in the past ) wish to raise issues … then pleas by all means pass all related matters  to myself  !

Note 2

should any of my ' promotional materials ' contravene or inhibit an expressed event for a specific demographic , then this can be handled on a case by case basis ! , and I will be more than happy to make occasional concessions and allowances i.e  I wont display any skull or death reference materials in the event of a scheduled funeral function etc


PROPOSED COURSE OF ACTION !

Option 1

signages to be returned and left alone unless prior mediation has at least been attempted ! or concession granted ! ( as stipulated above in Note Addendum 2 )

for the short term duration of the city wide open studios throughout the autumn 2018 including ' drawn to the valley open studio and artists exhibitions / Devon Artist Network open studios event / and the Plymouth Art Weekender : including and extending to additional independent short term exhibit adjustments and scheduling

hopefully culminating in a fairly symbiotic co habitation arrangement !

alternatively …..

OPTION 2

we remain at loggerheads ! we can continue to purposefully disagree over petty recriminations !

i.e everytime I put out a sign or banner or happen to be engaging in production in the communal outside spaces ( which of course as act of production or protest I will be compelled to continue to do ) . you then counter with some insistence or confrontational habit , only serving to inflame my reactionary tendency and to inspire me to escalate the presence of said protest or production to ensure inconveniences caused !! e.g …. you don't like a little A board or some flags ! well how about ' persons unkown ' spraypainting a load of anti royal slogans and profanity all over the exterior of the dman building …. really hard to pin liabilities on persons unknown … regardless of scale of supposition !! trust me what ever you want to get your knickers in a twist about …. I have a hernia for you …. so sit down shut up and stop causing trouble !!

This would only serve to inflame discord, harbour resentments and ultimately inhibit a much needed focus for topical discussion points, a melee of free flowing creativity …. and a much needed community engaging asset … that isn't owned / sponsored / manipulated through inept government or poor policy or greedy machinations , a genuine rarity these days …. the days of the charlatan !



I hope that you will take this under consideration when considering future courses of action !!

respectfully , although not completely without disdain at this stage

Aaron ( Artby ) Valerio